Taking the Plunge
by JoBethMegAmy. my homegirls
Summary: Oneshot AU, where a 14-year-old Jane Rizzoli accompanies her father to a very nice town on plumbing business. Maura's friend is excited at the prospect of eyeing Mr. Rizzoli's attractive son, but Maura finds herself much more intrigued by his alluring daughter. again: one.shot.


**A/N**: Okay, so a while ago someone on tumblr asked for a fic where a young Jane accompanied her father on plumbing business to Maura's house. This oneshot wouldn't leave my head, so I decided to get it out before I leave town tomorrow. In this fic, Jane and Maura are 14, Tommy is older than Jane, and... that's pretty much all you need to know.

* * *

When Maura arrived at her neighbor Julie Harper's house to help her study for their upcoming chemistry test, she was a bit surprised to see how glamorous the girl was. She was wearing a bit more makeup than usual, fancy clips were holding her hair in place, and she was wearing a skirt that was definitely nicer (and shorter) than the one which made up a part of their private school uniform.

"You…didn't get all dolled up for _me_, did you?" Maura asked.

"Of course not," Julie sighed, opening the door wider to let in her study buddy.

"Are you expecting someone else?"

Julie glanced around to make sure her mother was out of sight, then hurried Maura into the expansive kitchen. "My mom is," she whispered, sitting at the table.

"Ah. So…"

Julie's parents had recently gone through a very publicized divorce, which Julie herself claimed to care very little about, so long as she got to stay in the same school as before, where all her friends were. She and Maura weren't exactly close pals, but Maura was definitely the smartest girl in their class and Julie really needed help passing the next test. But given her excitement over whoever her mother was expecting, Maura was starting to doubt they would get anything productive done.

"Our sink needs to be fixed," Julie said. "So she called the plumber."

"So you dressed up for the plumber? That was very courteous of you."

"Geez, Maura, no. My _mom_ will have dressed up for the plumber—he's some slick Italian guy, and my mom's obsessed with the way he talks. Like sometimes he'll start swearing in Italian if he accidentally hurts himself, or he'll talk to his son in Italian if he gets annoyed—"

Finally feeling like she was catching on, Maura said, "A-ha! His son!"

"Omigod he's so hot," Julie gushed. "Like, _oh my god. _He has just these amazing eyes, and his hair is like—omigod. You'll see. He's like his dad's assistant, I guess."

"Um…how old is he?"

"Probably a junior or a senior. I haven't asked him."

Both the girls jumped when Julie's mother announced her presence in the kitchen with a barking voice: "_Girls!_ What are you doing in here? Julie, I thought I told you not to be in the kitchen when Mr. Rizzoli is here! You'll distract him!"

"Oh right, I forgot that's a turf you want for yourself," Julie mumbled under her breath. Then speaking loudly enough for her mother to hear, she said, "Right! Sorry. We'll be sure to get out of his way as soon as he gets here."

"Move now."

With an aggravated sigh, Julie led Maura into the living room, which was right by the front door. That way, they could still see Rizzoli and his son when they came in, which was just five minutes later. Mrs. Harper somehow beat her daughter to the door, opening it with one of her tinkling little laughs as she waved Frank Rizzoli into the house.

Maura expected a strapping young man to be the one who followed him inside, but Frank's shadow was instead a tall and somewhat awkward-looking girl, probably around Maura's own age. Her black hair was pulled into a loose ponytail, nearly hidden behind the Rizzoli & Sons baseball cap on her head. Long, muscular legs were put on full display between a pair of musty black converse shoes and denim cut-offs. She hadn't developed much of a chest yet, but her white tank top offered plenty to look at in terms of her strong tan arms. Maura's breath hitched when the girl, realizing she was being ogled, looked over and caught her gaze. Normally Maura would have been mortified to have been found out, but she couldn't look away from those dark, soulful eyes.

It was almost unnerving how quickly she was struck with the thought: _That is the most gorgeous creature I have ever seen and I never want to stop looking_.

She was so enraptured that she failed to recognize the fact that those dark brown eyes were giving Maura a good going-over as well, just as admiring.

"Jane!"

Her eyes flitted back to her father. "What, Pop?"

"Would you see what's keeping your brother?"

Julie, who had looked gravely disappointed when Tommy hadn't come in, perked up at this. She pulled back the curtain and saw Tommy sitting in the back of the truck, tying up his boots. "We'll help!" she said, jumping off the couch and running out the door before Maura had a chance to follow. Frank shrugged and followed Mrs. Harper to the kitchen, leaving Jane and Maura alone in the living room.

"Good thing she offered to help," Jane said dryly, hesitantly stepping outside but looking back, indicating she hoped Maura would follow. "Getting Tommy's not a one-person job."

"Oh, it isn't?" Maura asked.

Jane raised an eyebrow at Maura's tone, which conveyed that she had taken the joke seriously instead of going along with it. "Uh…no," Jane said slowly, rubbing the back of her neck. "I was being sarcastic."

Maura blushed. "Oh—of course, sorry."

"No need to apologize."

"So…are you one of Rizzoli's sons?"

Jane smiled at the light attempt at humor. "The shameful daughter," she said. "Tommy's set up to join the business, but my Pop thought it'd be a good idea for me start coming out on jobs just to see how some stuff is done. I can do all right, usually, but sometimes there's different systems he wants us to know that we don't have on our block. This is a real nice house you've got here," she said, nodding at the mansion behind them.

"Oh, I don't live here."

"You don't?" Jane asked disbelievingly.

"No, I'm just helping my friend study for a test. I live in the one next door."

"Oh." Of course. Girls who dressed this nice and looked so clean and had hair so shiny obviously came from money. "I'm Jane, by the way. Jane Rizzoli."

"Maura Isles." She frowned when Jane laughed. "Why is that funny?"

"It's not funny," Jane said quickly. "It just—it _sounds _like a fancy name. It suits you." She cleared her throat awkwardly, not sure how to read the smile Maura was giving her. "Hey, what school do you go to? Or hold on—let me guess. Bromwell?"

Maura had to laugh at the posh inflection Jane had used. "Yes, I'm afraid that's me. What about you?"

"St. Dominic's. We're all pretty much morons over there."

"Oh, I'm sure that's not true," Maura said, and Jane shrugged. "All of us bring something, colloquially speaking, to the table—in fact, I could use your help right now, actually."

Jane raised her eyebrows. "Yeah?"

Maura couldn't help noticing Jane's voice had deepened slightly on the word, and it sent a shiver down her spine. "Um—a plumbing problem, I mean. We've got a clogged toilet, and I haven't been able to bring myself to go near it for fear of inadvertently flooding the bathroom, and I never got around to calling a plumber—"

Lifting up her arms, Jane said, "Consider your plumber called."

"HEY!" It was Frank, who had reappeared in the doorway, looking a bit peeved. "Can one of you kids get your ass in here to help out?"

Tommy finally got up from the truck, which he'd been leaning against while chatting with Julie. "Comin' Pop!" he called, and Frank walked back inside. "Jane, you gonna watch?"

"Nah, Maura here needs help with a clogged toilet," Jane said, nodding at the girl. "I'm gonna go check it out."

"Think you can handle it?" Tommy teased her.

Jane rolled her eyes. "Pretty sure, yeah."

"Okay, I'll tell Pop." He strode towards the house with a toolbox in his hands, Julie giddily following him. Maura had dimly registered Tommy's handsomeness, understanding why Julie was so infatuated, but not fully understanding why she herself found Jane much more attractive.

For her part, Jane was more than aware of what was going on. A crash-course in girls-who-like-other-girls at the basketball camp she attended last summer had pretty much wiped out all of Jane's self-doubt in this area. She knew what she liked, and she knew just what to accentuate in order to ensure that other girls were hooked. Maura was that rare combination of beautiful and adorable—Jane found her naiveté cute and endearing, if a bit at odds with the body she knew any other high school freshman would kill to have.

"So you've never unclogged a toilet yourself before?" Jane asked.

"No. I don't know a thing about plumbing."

"Gotcha," Jane said with a smirk. She was sure nothing would be needed aside from a plunger, but if Maura didn't know that… "Well, just to be safe, I'd better bring this along," she said, taking a utility belt out of the back of the truck. She pretended not to notice Maura's blatant stare as she casually looped the belt around herself, letting it rest low on her waist before she pulled on a pair of work gloves. Maura was glad Jane hadn't considered it necessary to get one of the blue jumpsuits her father and brother were wearing—it would have covered and bulked up that gorgeous body of hers. "Lead the way to your place," Jane said.

As they headed down the sidewalk, Maura couldn't help feeling that Jane was definitely trying to get her turned on. That, or she was making fun of her. There was just a little too much swagger to Jane's walk, made inexplicably sexier by the belt hanging low on her hips. Its bulkiness added a bit more masculinity to Jane's feminine build, as did the saunter in her step. Maura had only ever seen boys walk like that.

She nearly missed her own house.

"Whoa," Jane breathed when they walked inside. "This is, uh… this is _really _nice."

"I'd thank you, but I have nothing to do with the size or appearance of the house," Maura said. "My mother decorated it, and my father picked it out."

Jane had to work hard to keep her jaw from hanging open. She had been impressed enough by the house's size from the outside, but she almost felt like a map would be needed to get along indoors. It was like being inside a small museum. All the more astounding was how casual Maura seemed about it, and Jane supposed that if she were surrounded by such luxury every day, she would probably get accustomed to it pretty quickly as well. She was dying to know the monetary value of the house, but couldn't bring herself to be _that _rude.

Instead, she tried to be as casual as Maura appeared. "So, do both your parents work?"

"Yes. They're actually out of town on business at the moment, which is why I said it would've been my job to call a plumber. I didn't want to ask Francine."

"Sister?"

"Au pair."

"Au pair…like a nanny?" Jane snickered.

"Well seeing as I can't legally drive yet, I _do _need a way to get around," Maura defended herself.

"I guess public transportation never occurred to you?"

"It _did _occur to me. It didn't occur to my parents," Maura said sharply.

Something in Maura's tone made Jane feel a little guilty for having made fun of her. There were a lot of things Maura's statement could have meant, and Jane didn't want to jump to any conclusions. She also wasn't sure she could handle hearing about them, though, so she muttered an apology before Maura finally brought her to the toilet in question.

"Ah, yes," Jane said. "This looks very serious."

"It does?" Maura asked nervously.

"Yup. Got a plunger?"

"A what?"

Jane raised her eyebrows. "Seriously? A _plunger_."

Maura stepped inside the bathroom and opened the closet. "Oh, you mean this?" she asked, pulling out the item Jane had been looking for. "I've never used it. And it was so… un-aesthetically pleasing; I couldn't bring myself to keep it out."

"Boy, now I've heard everything," Jane chuckled, taking the plunger. Maura looked on in fascination as Jane carefully put up the lid, stuck in the tool, and started plunging. As she worked, Maura sidled over to the sink for a better look, leaning against it and biting her lip in admiration of Jane's pumping arms. All too soon, Jane pulled back and said, "Well, that oughtta do it. Wanna test it out?"

"Is it safe?" Maura asked hesitantly. "I mean, is there a chance it'll flood?"

"If it does, I promise to pick you up and carry you out before even a drop of toilet water can touch those fancy-ass shoes of yours."

Now both of them were finding themselves wishing the water would overflow, but it hadn't occurred to Jane to screw up on purpose. So when Maura pushed the lever, it flushed normally, and Jane congratulated herself on another job well done.

"Wow! Fantastic!" Maura gasped.

"Yeah, y'know, the next time that happens, you probably won't need professional assistance," Jane chuckled. "If you made sure you weren't dressed like you were going to Sunday brunch, you could always plunge it yourself."

"Oh gosh, I feel like an idiot for not figuring that out myself," Maura said.

"Hey, don't sweat it," Jane said, pulling her gloves off and sticking them in her belt. She threaded her long fingers together, cracking her knuckles. "Now you know. And I'm not even going to charge you for the opportunity of learning it at my hand."

"Jane, you must let me compensate you somehow."

"Jesus, Maura, what did you have in mind?" Jane teased her, raising her eyebrows. "Compensation …heh."

"Um… could I get you some water, at least?"

"Nah, I'm good, thanks." Jane had tried enough rich people's water to know she didn't like how it tasted. There was always some sort of fruity essence in it, or there was too much ice, or there some unpronounceable name on the bottle. That crap was for rich people who hated themselves. "Could I get your number, though?"

Maura looked surprised. "What for?"

"I dunno, so I can call you sometime," Jane said with a shrug. "To hang out, or whatever. Some day when I'm not on Pop-watching duty—he's probably waiting for me right now." She already had her phone out expectantly.

"Oh…sure," Maura said happily. She gave Jane her number, then asked, "Can I have yours?"

"I'm texting you right now," Jane said. "So you'll have it."

It was then that Maura realized her phone was in her bag, which she had left in the front hallway after leading Jane inside. She made a mental note to check it as soon as Jane was gone, a time which came much too fast for either of them.

"Okay, but while I'm here," Jane drawled, standing with one hand on the front door's knob. "Are you free tonight?"

"Tonight?"

"Yeah. You free? We'll probably be done making the rounds by five-thirty. Want to grab a bite after I get cleaned up?"

Maura was elated. "Sure!"

"Cool. I don't want Francine tagging along, though. Ever tagged along on the back of someone's bicycle before?"

"No," Maura replied, looking startled at the very thought.

She almost melted at the sight of Jane's mischievous grin. "Guess I'll be the one teaching you how, then. See ya tonight, Maura!"

"Goodbye!"

As soon as Jane disappeared from view, Maura shut the door and hurried to pick up her phone. There indeed was a text from an unrecognized number, and she couldn't help grinning when she read it: _"See you at six. Ciao, bella!"_

* * *

**A/N**: Thanks for reading! Reminder- **this is a oneshot. **There's nothing else to write. If you want fluffy young AU Rizzles puppy love, I can only direct you to my other story, "Send That Rainbow To Me." I just wanted to get this out :)


End file.
